{"id":2453,"date":"2025-08-24T01:55:12","date_gmt":"2025-08-24T01:55:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ft365.org\/index.php\/2025\/08\/24\/home-equity-news-this-weeks-roundup-bankrate-2\/"},"modified":"2025-08-24T01:55:12","modified_gmt":"2025-08-24T01:55:12","slug":"home-equity-news-this-weeks-roundup-bankrate-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/ft365.org\/index.php\/2025\/08\/24\/home-equity-news-this-weeks-roundup-bankrate-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Home Equity News: This Week’s Roundup | Bankrate"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The top stories in home equity, mortgages and real estate<\/h2>\n

Interest rates roundup<\/h3>\n

High home prices, low sales<\/h3>\n

Existing-home sales remained sluggish in the month of July, even as the median home price hit a record of $422,400 \u2014 the highest ever for that month. Properties are staying on the market longer, too. Could it be that buyers\u2019 affordability challenges are literally coming home to roost?<\/p>\n

Who\u2019s winning and losing in the home equity sweepstakes?<\/h3>\n

Since 2020, home equity stakes have skyrocketed for most Americans, but some regions are cashing in more than others. While Southern and Midwestern states like West Virginia and Oklahoma have seen triple-digit gains, other markets have seen less \u2014 and a few areas, like Washington D.C. and Louisiana, actually lost equity. Beyond bragging rights, what does rising home equity mean for homeowners?<\/p>\n

Residential real estate moves from a seller\u2019s market to a buyer\u2019s advantage<\/h3>\n

After years of sellers calling the shots, homebuyers are finally getting some power, especially in former hot spots like Texas and Florida. Homes are remaining unsold for longer; price growth is slowing, and in some areas, prices are even \u2014 gasp \u2014 dropping. If you\u2019re house-hunting, here are some tactics for using your leverage. <\/p>\n

Home equity credit line vs. high-limit credit card: the pros and cons of each<\/h3>\n

When a five-figure expense hits, what\u2019s the better way to finance it: a HELOC or a premium credit card? One probably will cost you less, interest rate-wise, but the other is quicker to get and more flexible. We parse the advantages and disadvantages of these two types of revolving credit.<\/p>\n

Black women homeowners: unmarried and unstoppable<\/h3>\n

Single Black women are among the fastest-growing homebuyers in the U.S., despite the challenges of high prices, elevated mortgage rates, and systemic racial and gender barriers. Read three real-life stories of ladies who became proud homeowners while flying solo. <\/p>\n

HELOC rejection reset<\/h3>\n

If you are one of the millions of homeowners with tappable equity, you may be eyeing a HELOC or a home equity loan. Alas, obtaining one isn\u2019t as easy as it may seem, with about half of applications being denied due to low credit, high debt, or limited equity. What can you do to boost your chances of approval?<\/p>\n

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47.59% <\/p>\n

Percentage of HELOC applications that were denied in Q4 2024 <\/p>\n

Source: Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

In case you missed it<\/h2>\n

Technically, these stories were released in the previous weeks, but they\u2019re still worth highlighting.<\/p>\n

Home equity by the numbers<\/h3>\n

Your home isn\u2019t just a place to live; it\u2019s where your equity grows. Keeping a close eye on equity trends can help you understand both the opportunities and the risks that come with owning a home.<\/p>\n

First home fundamentals <\/h3>\n

Buying your first home can feel overwhelming, but it doesn\u2019t have to be. Bankrate\u2019s guide steers you through all the things you need to know \u2013including the fact that, if you haven\u2019t owned a home in the last few years, you\u2019re considered a first-time buyer (and can take advantage of certain programs). <\/p>\n

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<\/p>\n

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Unlock your home\u2019s value <\/h3>\n

Achieve your financial goals with predictable payments on a lump-sum home equity loan.<\/p>\n

Explore offers <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n

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Did you find this page helpful? <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Help us improve our content<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The top stories in home equity, mortgages and real estate Interest rates roundup High home prices, low sales Existing-home sales remained sluggish in the month of July, even as the median home price hit a record of $422,400 \u2014 the highest ever for that month. Properties are staying on the market longer, too. Could it<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":414,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2453","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-news"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["http:\/\/ft365.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/413-Banking-3-25-news-roundup.jpg",1280,720,false],"thumbnail":["http:\/\/ft365.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/413-Banking-3-25-news-roundup-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["http:\/\/ft365.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/413-Banking-3-25-news-roundup-300x169.jpg",300,169,true],"medium_large":["http:\/\/ft365.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/413-Banking-3-25-news-roundup-768x432.jpg",640,360,true],"large":["http:\/\/ft365.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/413-Banking-3-25-news-roundup-1024x576.jpg",640,360,true],"1536x1536":["http:\/\/ft365.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/413-Banking-3-25-news-roundup.jpg",1280,720,false],"2048x2048":["http:\/\/ft365.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/413-Banking-3-25-news-roundup.jpg",1280,720,false],"morenews-featured":["http:\/\/ft365.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/413-Banking-3-25-news-roundup-1024x576.jpg",1024,576,true],"morenews-large":["http:\/\/ft365.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/413-Banking-3-25-news-roundup-825x575.jpg",825,575,true],"morenews-medium":["http:\/\/ft365.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/413-Banking-3-25-news-roundup-590x410.jpg",590,410,true],"crawlomatic_preview_image":["http:\/\/ft365.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/413-Banking-3-25-news-roundup-260x146.jpg",260,146,true]},"author_info":{"display_name":"henry","author_link":"http:\/\/ft365.org\/index.php\/author\/henry\/"},"category_info":"Latest News<\/a>","tag_info":"Latest News","comment_count":"0","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/ft365.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2453","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/ft365.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/ft365.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ft365.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ft365.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2453"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/ft365.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2453\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ft365.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/414"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/ft365.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2453"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ft365.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2453"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ft365.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2453"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}